During his betting splurge on in 2024, Conor McGregor made a big call that caught the attention of fans and the press alike.
McGregor backed both Max Holloway and Robert Whittaker to win their respective fights by KO. This was a pretty bold bet because both fighters were underdogs, but McGregor seemed very confidence in his picks when he recorded himself making them.
Then again, when does Conor McGregor not seem confident?
The bet was a multiple, requiring both predictions to be correct in order for it to pay out. Whittaker was priced a 4.6 (18/5) while Holloway had odds of 7.4 (32/5), but put together in a combi the odds almost trebled to 34.04 or about 33/1.
This would give the famous Irish UFC champion a payout of over $17,000,000 if the bet won, with an extra $100,000 paid as a special multi bonus.
The bet did not win. In fact, McGregor couldn’t have been more wrong about either fight.
Robert Whittaker was forced into a submission 3 minutes and 34 seconds into the first round. His opponent, Khamzat Chimaev hit him with a double leg take down then held him in a nasty face crank until he tapped out. Max Holloway’s fight was the main event, and although it lasted longer than Whittaker’s fight, it ended just as decisively. After a cautious start focussing on leg kicks, Ilia Topuria caught Holloway with a massive right hand in round 3, following up with a flurry of punches before knocking him out with a left hook.
McGregor made the bet with a crypto bookie called Duelbits who he had partnered with as part of their marketing campaign. They will have been very happy with the publicity, and just as happy with the $500k.
Conor McGregor has bet $500K on Max Holloway and Robert Whittaker to win by KO 🤑
🎥 @TheNotoriousMMA #UFC #MMA #UFC308 pic.twitter.com/GiAOSGnM0m
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 26, 2024
Here he is being smug and overconfident from his luxury yacht. You almost feel sorry for him losing his $500k, don’t you? Me neither.